C. Luongo (1) , C. Shih (1), J.W. Sturges (2) , D.C. Bogles (2) , and R.A. Wright (2)

PowerPoint Presentation*
Senior Design Projects in Mechanical Engineering – Active Involvement of Industry Partners and Advisory Council
C. Luongo(1), C. Shih(1), J.W. Sturges(2), D.C. Bogles(2) , and R.A. Wright(2)
(1) Professors
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Integrated Curriculum
Capstone design and eng. design methods run concurrently during senior year, design is otherwise taught in Intro. to ME and embedded in curriculum
Department has about 325 undergraduate students with a declared ME major, and graduates ~ 60-70 BSME per year
2007 ASEE Annual Conference Honolulu, Hawaii, June 24-27, 2007
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Expose students to project-based engineering design (two-semesters) under conditions closely resembling industrial practice
Teamwork
Annual project presentation, open house/poster session, and ME advisory council (MEAC) assessment/feedback meeting
Strengthen ties between department and industrial partners
Direct MEAC participation
Recruitment and placement of BS-MS interns
“Look ahead” capability of ME trends in industry for curriculum re-tooling
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Industrial Sponsorships
Academic Year
Student Enrollment
Fraction of Industry-Sponsored Projects
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Project Descriptions
A wide variety of student projects spanning the entire spectrum of mechanical engineering practice
(shared in design reviews for class exposure)
Elgin/AFRL - Autonomous lawnmower
Elgin/AFRL - Human Parasail System
ASME human-powered vehicle
Lockheed – Projector stabilizer mount
Cummins – Crankshaft fatigue tester
Cummins – Rotating/bending tensile tester
Talla-Tech - Immersion tank
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One-day senior capstone design review mini-symposium
Early April
Dinner and award announcement in the evening
followed by the two-day MEAC spring meeting and ME annual assessment meeting
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Done “early” to allow project completion prior to finals/graduation rush
Motivation for students to showcase project results
Invitation to all sponsors and industrial advisory board members
Panel of “judges” (all from industrial sponsors and MEAC members)
Best-in-category awards (certificates)
Advisory Council meeting scheduled to immediately follow senior design open house
Opportunity for underclassmen to observe senior projects (college-wide)
Follow-up with feedback requests
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Effort through summer to harvest enough projects
Industrial partners in advisory board (35 out of 71 since 03-07)
Local companies
Course alumni
Faculty contacts
Consistent sponsors:
AFRL at Eglin AFB (17), Lockheed-Martin (Orlando, Huntsville, etc., 8), Cummins Engines (6), Sandia National Lab (4), Boeing, Shell Oil, Talla-Tech
Other strong sponsors:
Variety of small local businesses and individuals
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Industrial/MEAC Involvement –
Projects come from industry as part of a broader relationship, not just as senior projects
Potential recruitment, advisory board involvement, interest on some research areas, sustainable involvement, etc.
Need a “champion” at a higher level, also need people in the “trenches” with a genuine interest in working with students and act as “customer/mentor”
Projects need to be selected carefully for scope and difficulty (enough resources, etc.)
Direct involvement of industrial partners and MEAC has resulted in improvements through assessment/feedback
A specific example will be given
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Embedded Model (1999-2003)
Combined lectures, Engineering Design Methods (EDM) and concurrent year-long projects
Problems: Lecture material too late for project, project delay, combined grading encouraged students to concentrate on coursework in detriment of projects
Just-in-time model (2003-date)
3+3+3 units (Fall/Fall/Spring of senior year)
Separate Engineering Design Method (EDM) class from the Capstone project class
Problems: Lecture material still too late for projects; students not practicing formal design process in core courses
Capstone-1
Capstone-2
EDM
Capstone-1
Capstone-2
EDM
EDM
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Freshman
Sophomore
Junior
Senior
ME as a profession
Product design cycle
two-semester capstone project design/realization
1st Year Engineering Lab
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Other components: legal, ethical, environmental, societal issues, team work, communication
Guest lectures by MEAC members and other engineering professionals
Coordinate with junior-level core courses to implement formal design practice in project realization
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The Challenges Ahead
Continue to expand circle of industrial partners to keep up with program growth
Streamline the process for project harvesting and management/mentoring
Expand college-wide to allow for multi-disciplinary teams and projects
Expand international collaborations to expose students to engineering in a global economy (ongoing)
Fully integrating the design process with the core curriculum; both vertically and horizontally
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Well established capstone design course at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, FAMU-FSU College of Engineering
8 years running, strong industrial participation, including high rate of returning customers
Industry participation is an important part of making capstone experience “realistic”
ME Advisory Council has been instrumental in increasing industrial participation in capstone projects and help us close an annual ABET assessment cycle that includes the senior project open house
Partnering with industry has been beneficial for all involved as evidenced by its self-sustainability
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Engineer of 2020
Lifelong learners
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BS in engineering Pre-engineering degree for entry-level engineer position
New Liberal arts degree in the 21st century (springboard for other careers)
Professional “Master” degree program (modeled after law, medicine, pharmacy degrees)
Emphasis on the first-year engineering curriculum – design, team-based, hands-on activities

C. Luongo (1) , C. Shih (1), J.W. Sturges (2) , D.C. Bogles (2) , and R.A. Wright (2)

Documents

Transcript of C. Luongo (1) , C. Shih (1), J.W. Sturges (2) , D.C. Bogles (2) , and R.A. Wright (2)